Thanks. I've toured the Highlands and stopped at a few distilleries but never took the tours. The trip was about the natural beauty for us. Were you in Tomintoul? There's a place there called The Whiskey Castle with 500+ single malts. We tasted some there and brought home a Provenance bottling I haven't seen in the US. I still haven't opened it.

We did not go to Tomintoul.We were in Edinburgh and the Deanston distillery was close by.What food! What drink! What people!We were at "the Whisky Experience" where there is a room with 5000 bottles behind glass.Our supplier, Jeff Karlovitch, has a similar collection in his home.Hope to win this trip again some day....

A little off topic Clrv, but I have learned the hard way that the cork tops can be problematic over time. I used to keep my bottles standing up, which dried out the corks, which meant a few lost corks in the bottles. I now keep them all on their sides, as recommended to me.

I recommend to keep the bottles standing, from what i've heard the direct contact with high alcohol could attack the cork and then you might experience some nasty taste in your scotch. Maybe an urban legend? I've never experienced some lost cork in the bottle.

You should preferably keep the bottles in a humidified environment, same as for your wine. That should prevent your scotch corks from drying out. Or even better: drink them up before the cork dries out